1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to package air conditioners and heat pumps. More particularly, the field of the invention involves single package horizontal airflow air conditioners and heat pumps.
2. Description of the Related Art
Package air conditioner and heat pump units generally comprise both indoor and outdoor coils, a compressor, and both indoor and outdoor fans. The outdoor coil and fan are disposed in communication with the outdoor ambient to circulate ambient air through the outdoor coils. The indoor coils and fan are disposed in communication with air ducts which are connected to the space being cooled or heated thereby circulating the indoor air through the indoor coils. For heat pump units, electric strip heating elements may also be disposed with the indoor fan to supplement the heating of the indoor coil when used as a condenser. Conventionally, the package units include a box shaped cabinet made of sheet metal in which the coils, fans, and compressor are located, with the cabinet including supply and return ports for connection with the corresponding supply and return air ducts of the structure being serviced.
Earlier, manufacturers of package units made no distinction as to the orientation of the supply and return duct openings. Whichever orientation was most convenient to enhance the design of the package unit was employed in the particular arrangement. This situation created a large population of package units being installed with a mix of oppositely arranged air duct openings.
More recently, manufacturers generally standardize the air duct orientation, with the return duct conventionally arranged on the left side with a diameter of about 14 inches, while the supply duct is located on the right side with a diameter of about 12 inches. Unfortunately, this conventional orientation presents a problem to installers of replacement package units with the reverse of the conventional air duct orientation. The installer must reverse the orientation of the air ducts in the structure so as to match the duct openings of the conventionally oriented replacement package unit, a practice which is costly and time consuming.
Package units are conventionally employed with mobile homes as well as with residential and commercial buildings. In the case of new installations of mobile homes, the installer may be faced with placing a new package unit on either of the long sides of the mobile home depending on how close the mobile home is to an adjacent structure or property line of the lot on which the home is located. Since the supply and return duct positions are predetermined by the mobile home manufacturer, the installer is faced with a potentially opposite orientation of ducts with respect to the package unit. Again, the installer must reverse the orientation of the air ducts in the mobile home in order to match the orientation of the package unit.
Although mobile home manufacturers and builders are attempting to adopt the conventional supply and return duct orientation, the conventional orientation has not been universally accepted. Even if all newly constructed buildings and mobile homes adopted a uniform orientation of air ducts, these problems would remain for the multitudes of already existing homes. Therefore, it would be desirable to have a package unit which could be easily installed regardless of the orientation of the duct structure.